- Jermain Defoe appointed Woking manager, landing first role in senior management.
- Former Rangers striker credits coaching experiences at Ibrox for development.
- Defoe begins managerial journey with National League side’s push for progress.
Former Rangers striker Jermain Defoe has secured his first job in management.
The former England international will take charge of English National League side Woking as their manager.
He scored 32 and assisted 10 in his 74 Gers appearances, winning the 2021 Premiership title under Steven Gerrard.
Rangers role planted the coaching seed
Defoe’s first taste of the sidelines came during his time in Scotland.
After helping the club win 55 in 2020/21, he agreed a new one-year deal the following summer.
That deal added a coaching role to his playing duties and after Gerrard’s departure to Aston Villa in November 2022, he took charge of the team for a single League Cup match against Hibernian.
He was however, removed from his coaching responsibilities by Giovanni Van Bronckhorst shortly afterwards.
“Jermain’s been really good. He was part of the coaching staff but also a player,” Van Bronckhorst said in a press conference at the time.
“He’s also busy with his training badges, which is really good because we’ve already started thinking about team processes and tactical possibilities.
“But for now Jermain is still a player and we’ll use him only as a player.”
This, added to limited playing time, caused his departure that January.
Building his CV
Since his retirement following his short stint back at the Stadium of Light, Defoe has had coaching roles with Tottenham.
He returned to Spurs in August 2022 and coached within their youth setup until July 2024.
“Tottenham deserve a lot of credit, even before I’d retired, the club got in contact with me and said, ‘When you finish playing, we want you back here, we’re going to help you do all your badges,’” Defoe revealed.
Lessons from Rangers
During his spell with Rangers, Defoe worked under Gerrard and learned valuable coaching lessons from both the Liverpool legend and his assistant Michael Beale.
Gerrard allowed Defoe to pick the starting XI for a pre-season friendly with Real Madrid in 2021.
“There was one occasion against Real Madrid, pre-season. I wasn’t involved, so Stevie told me to pick the team,” he revealed.
“I didn’t know who to put on the bench, because of the quality in the squad. Stevie said to me, ‘this is what I have to deal with every weekend!’.
“If you’re leaving players out, it’s a difficult conversation, but that’s the stuff you have to do. I wouldn’t say I’m looking forward to that stuff, but it’s part and parcel.”
He also praised Beale, who would go on to have his own stint as Gers boss.
“I’ve worked with some top managers and top coaches and he is up there,” Defoe explained.
“His attention to detail and how he puts his points across for people to understand.
“He impressed me in a big way.”
Working at Woking
“Woking is a historic club with huge potential, and I’m thrilled to be part of this exciting project,” Defoe said.
Woking chairman Todd Johnson also spoke of the thinking behind the appointment: “Jermain’s achievements as a player speak for themselves, but what stood out to us during the process was how he sees the game, how he drives standards, and his approach to leadership and player development.
“We have a clear plan for where we want to go as a club, and we believe Jermain is the right person to build on the strong foundations already in place and help take us forward in the next phase of that journey.”
